The Fox Hole

Chapter 3: The Dragonborn Cometh

–Haru–

Being a full-time teacher of magic students must be a stressful job. Professor McGonagall was passed out on the bar counter. She kept asking me to fill her cup, and I kept pouring her sake refills. I may have underestimated how strong Kappa sake was because she wasn't waking up anytime soon…

"We're back, Haru." Harry Potter walked back into my restaurant as we were approaching dinnertime. He looked the same, but I could see more light behind his eyes. I could tell he was already more put together mentally.

"Welcome back, you two. How were the healers?" I asked him and Hermione.

"The Yokai healers were amazing!" Hermione exclaimed. "I had no idea other countries had developed such impressive magic. And they did everything wandlessly!" she said boisterously.

"It wasn't just another country, Hermione. We are in another dimension entirely," Harry corrected her.

"So we are from different dimensions then?" I asked. "How did you guys figure that out?" It was a lot easier to figure out with Reigan since he's from a city in Japan that does not exist in my world. Harry and Hermione were from a hidden magical community in Britain though. That honestly sounded like the kind of thing my world would have. 

"Hogwarts is supposed to be a world-renowned magic school, but no one in Kyoto had ever heard of it," Hermione said. "They've never heard of Dumbledore either. He's supposed to be the greatest wizard in the whole world!"

I snorted. "What kind of name is Dumbledore?"

Harry smirked at me. "If you think that's bad, I have a mate in Gryffindor whose family name is Longbottom…"

I grinned at Harry. "Poor kid, he must be the butt of every joke." He grinned right back at me while Hermione let out a sigh and muttered something about boys and their dumb puns. "Was that all the proof you two could—or couldn't—find that we're from different dimensions?" I asked, just to be sure.

"No, we also tried making a long-distance call to Hermione's house. The number wasn't in service," Harry added.

"I know my parents didn't change their number; there's a phone in Hogsmeade, and I call them every weekend," Hermione pointed out. "Someone else had their number when I tried calling from Kyoto." 

That pretty much confirmed it, then. My restaurant had now appeared in not just one, but two different dimensions. The whole building itself manifested in empty lots, as if it had always been in those spots. The odd thing was that when I looked out the windows, all I saw was my own dimension. According to Harry and Hermione, my windows were completely blacked out from the outside in Hogsmeade. I would need to step foot in one of these other dimensions after closing hours to see what else was different.

"What are you two going to do now?" I asked them.

Harry took a seat directly at the counter. "First, we're going to get some dinner. And then, Hermione and I are both going to get a magical lawyer. I know who cast all those spells on me… They practically ruined my life," he muttered bitterly. 

"I'm going to kick Ronald right in his tiny pecker once I see him!" Hermione said vindictively.

"Ah… that guy. Yeah, he actually tried to come back here once you two left with my mom and little sis. He even brought along two of your teachers as backup. One of them was also a racist prick, so I made him leave. Professor McGonagall was pretty cool, though. She's right over there." I pointed a few stools down.

"P–Professor McGonagall!?" Hermione sputtered. "Why isn't she moving? What's wrong with her?"

"She drank a bit too much and passed out," I said. "The woman sure can drink, she went through three whole bottles by herself."

"What…?" Hermione looked at me in disbelief when I said that. "Our stern professor drank herself under the table…?" 

Harry, meanwhile, just started snickering. "Who knew she had it in her? This is turning out to be one crazy day," Harry remarked. He then went on to thank me profusely for setting up my restaurant in Hogsmeade and already changing his life for the better. 

I accepted his thanks, but told him that I wasn't the one who made it so my restaurant was mysteriously appearing in multiple dimensions. I don't think Harry quite believed me though. We agreed to table that debate once both of their stomachs started grumbling. 

"Can you please make us some fish and chips?" Hermione requested. "Hogwarts never serves fish. All they serve is pork, turkey and chicken. Every single meal!" She sounded completely exasperated as she mentioned how much meat Hogwarts served its students. It's like the school wanted every single student to develop gout later in life. 

Or maybe the school cooks genuinely didn't know how to make any other dishes. As a chef, that sounded like an atrocity. "I've got some yellow finned tuna that you both will love," I said while walking into the back of my kitchen where I kept all my ingredients in stasis spells.

While I was getting their food ready, Harry and Hermione both decided to share what happened to them. The Yokai healers were able to completely heal and restore Harry's damaged mind. Not only did he have some kind of Evil spirit Parasite in his head—that scared the shit out of the healers by the way—but he had also been charmed and 'obliviated' many times throughout his life by the school Headmaster. The Dumbledore guy with the dumb name. According to Hermione, the elderly headmaster was basically seen as the second coming of Merlin in their world. I didn't know what that was supposed to mean until Harry explained that Merlin was basically the Wizarding World's version of Jesus for some reason. 

"He's not Jesus!" Hermione pouted at Harry, clearly offended by his analogy.

"Yes he is, 'Mione. We literally use his name as a curse word," Harry pointed out. Hermione didn't have a good retort after that fact was shared with me.

Harry continued his story. The further he explained, the madder I got for him. Dumbledore was a total piece of shit.

The old man had forced Harry to sign away millions of galleons in wealth and properties Harry didn't even know he possessed. Harry then had his memories routinely erased to make sure he never remembered signing away all of his possessions. Dumbledore wasn't the only one who had illegally used mind magic on Harry though. Harry was also charmed to always be loyal and differential to that ginger asshole whom I had tossed out of my restaurant twice. Apparently, Ron's family was poor and wanted to milk Harry for whatever he had left once Dumbledore was done with him. The loyalty charms had been applied to Harry by Ron's mother when he met up with the Weasley family every summer. Harry was constantly obliviated so that he never remembered what was happening to him. 

Ironically, I think the Evil Spirit that was in Harry's cursed scar was what had saved him from basically becoming a retard from all that mind magic. In order to avoid being possessed or subsumed, Harry must have naturally developed an incredibly resilient mind. 

"So Voldemort actually ended up saving me for once?" Harry muttered to himself. "Merlin, this day is turning out so weird…"

When Harry was finished with his tale, we moved onto Hermione's. Hers wasn't nearly as long or as complex. We basically already knew what had happened to her after all. Hermione was being fed love potions keyed to Ron Weasley. Hermione is known in their school as a magical genius. She was going places once she graduated. According to her, Ron wanted to ride her coattails to an easy life of wealth and status. All it took was a few potions and she would have been destined to be his sugar mama for the rest of her life…

"For a 14-year-old, that kid sure knew how to hatch a pretty wicked scheme…" I said while placing plates of fish and chips in front of them both. 

Hermione wiped away her drool before she spoke. "Ron is dumb when it comes to books, but he's the best chess player I've ever seen."

"He's a natural-born snake. He should have been in Slytherin," Harry muttered before he started eating. His frown quickly turned to a smile once he tasted the fried fish. "Damn, that's bloody good!"

"Mmm, it really is!" Hermione enthusiastically added. She really liked my homemade tartar sauce.

While they were eating and I was cleaning up, a new voice spoke up. "That's quite the tale, children. If I were in either of your positions, I would deliver swift vengeance on those that wronged me." A woman walked up to the counter. She was wearing a long black and red cloak with a hood that hid most of her features. What it couldn't hide, though, were her glowing red eyes.

She was an obvious vampire. I hadn't ever actually met one so far in this second life. 

The new woman wasn't alone. A very large man wearing pitch-black armor stood next to her. He had a massive greatsword strapped hanging off of his back. His features were Scandinavian, possibly even Nordic. He also radiated power and danger. Scars that spoke of numerous battles littered his exposed skin. He held himself like a true warrior, never letting his guard down. Everything about this man screamed, "do not fuck with me." 

Besides my mother, he might have been the most dangerous person I'd ever encountered. He also smelled like a wolf—and a dragon? It was a very unusual combination to be sure.

Both of these newcomers had actually entered my restaurant at the beginning of Harry and Hermione's tale, but they remained quiet and waited until the kids were done talking.

"Welcome to the Fox Hole! Sorry about the wait, you two. I'm the owner, Haru." 

The man spoke up. His voice was deep and strong. "Well met, Haru. I am Agnar, and this is my companion Serana!"

"This is a very interesting place," Serana commented while glancing around. Her red eyes glowed with magic as she examined everything around her. "I can tell we are not in Nirn anymore. I didn't think such a thing was possible. How did you manage to open a portal to Nirn from your dimension without the Gods or Daedra discovering you?" she asked me.

"No idea," I said with a shrug. "At this point, I've just decided to go with it." 

Serana frowned at my nonchalance. Her companion seemed to find my attitude hilarious. "Hah! That's the spirit!" Agnar laughed boisterously. "Throughout my adventures across Skyrim, so many strange things happened to me! Dragons constantly tried to eat me, I ran across more draugr and bandits than I thought possible, and every single Daedric Prince kept trying to get me to work for them! I had no idea what was going on half the time, but it all ended up working out because I also decided to just go with it! And I even got to meet my lovely wife Serana here!" He wrapped his large arm around her and pulled her close to his armored chest.

If vampires could blush, I imagine Serana would have been doing just that. I could admit I was slightly jealous—Serana was hot as hell once she lowered her hood. 

"You fought dragons?" Harry asked Agnar. 

"Aye, lad. I've fought and slain dozens of the flying beasts by now!" That was quite the boast, but I found myself believing him. 

"I have to fight a dragon in a week! Can you give me some advice? I got entered into a stupid magic death tournament against my will. I'm pretty sure it was the Headmaster who slipped my name in the goblet at this point. If I die in an accident, all my remaining possessions I didn't sign away will go to him…" Harry trailed off bitterly. Poor kid couldn't seem to catch a break.

I was starting to think magic school wasn't worth the hype. I was homeschooled myself in this second life, but I knew Yasaka was in the process of searching for a good school for Kunou who clearly needed friends her own age. She was going to have to keep looking if Hogwarts was hosting death tournaments for students though.

Agnar looked at Harry critically. "Hm, you're a bit young to be fighting dragons, still a milk drinker. Although, you do have a fair bit of Magicka to work with. All hope is not completely lost. Magic isn't exactly my specialty, though. I mostly just hit things hard with my big sword," he said while unsheathing his greatsword to show us. It was made of actual dragonbone and was almost as long as Agnar was tall.

Harry looked disappointed when Agnar admitted he would be a poor teacher for the young wizard. Luckily for Harry, Serana stepped into the conversation. "I too have slain a handful of the giant flying lizards. I can teach you some spells that can actually hurt a dragon if you accept me as your teacher," Serana offered and Harry immediately bobbed his head up and down.

"Thank you! I've been dreading this first task for over a month. I have no idea what to do against a bloody dragon!" 

Hermione perked up next to Harry. "Can I learn too?"

"Are you in this death tournament as well?" Serana asked.

Hermione shook her head. "No, I just love learning magic!"

That answer seemed to be good enough for Serana."Ok, I do not mind teaching you as well, girl. I overheard your story as well when Agnar entered this establishment. I have had numerous men try to take advantage of me due to my looks. I shall teach you spells to protect yourself from nefarious advances and plots. The only man allowed to touch you will be your chosen hero, Harry."

Harry and Hermione both blushed heavily at Serana's insulation.

"T-That's not…We're not dating…" Hermione mumbled, but no one believed her.

Suddenly, I was feeling like a fifth wheel. The pain of being single in front of two couples. 

Thankfully, I was saved from the awkwardness when the vampire dragged her two new students over to a booth to start privately tutoring them on whatever Magicka was. 

While she was doing that, Agnar pulled up to the bar and sat down. Judging by his accent and appearance, I deduced he was from a culture that heavily resembled the Norse pantheon.

I knew exactly what he wanted without him even having to ask. I reached under the counter and brought out a bottle of mead. I kept some stocked in case any of the Norse ever stopped by Kyoto.

I pulled out a mug and filled it to the brim for him.

"You gotta pour yourself a glass as well, it's only proper!" Agnar told me. I shrugged and joined him for a drink. The mead burned just right as it went down my throat. I wasn't the biggest drinker, but I could hold my liquor fairly well.

Agnar slammed his mug back and drained the whole thing in one go. "Now that's a proper Nord drink right there! That was even better than Honningbrew or Blackbriar mead! You could make a lot of coin selling this across Skyrim, Haru," Agnar suggested.

"Really? That wasn't even a special brand or anything. Just regular mead I ordered online," I admitted. 

"Truly? The people of your plane must be true connoisseurs of food and drink! Pour me another, and bring me something to eat as well. With plenty of meat, of course!" The Nord said happily. He was clearly an easy guy to please who appreciated the simple things in life. I could respect that.

I decided to just give him the whole bottle. He happily started knocking it back. While he was doing that, I threw an extra large T-bone steak over the grill. Agnar was a big guy, and I suspected he was also a big eater judging by how much he could drink already.

I didn't forget about Serana either. She looked like a full vampire, not a dhampir, so she probably couldn't eat regular food. Luckily for her, I had a solution.

Blood sausages!

Sausages made entirely of pig blood. Truthfully, I thought they were horrible no matter how perfectly I prepared them, but I'm sure a vampire will love them.

The nice thing about cooking with magic was stasis spells. Ingredients could be kept fresh as long as I needed them to be, and remain perfect to cook with pretty much indefinitely. I had multiple fridges that all came equipped with the spells already on them.

Agnar peeked over the counter and asked me what I was making with all the pig blood I pulled out of the fridge. When I told him it was for Serana, he gave me a grateful look.

The steak needed about eight minutes on the grill, and the sausages were currently cooking in a pan. While I waited, I continued to chat with Agnar.

"I can tell you are strong, Haru. Very strong. In Skyrim, you could easily become a famous adventurer, especially with your unique looks. The maidens would flock to your bed. What made you want to become a cook of all professions?" Agnar asked curiously.

"I don't mind fighting, but cooking has always been my true passion. These hands of mine weren't meant for taking lives, but for filling empty bellies. Of course, I know my life won't always be peaceful and easy. My mom is technically the queen of my people. Other factions will eventually try to attack me to get to her. That's why she trained me so intensely when I was younger," I explained a bit of my life to Agnar as he shared some of his own in turn.

He was something known as the Dragonborn. He was a living myth to all the people of Skyrim. Everyone looked to him to solve all of their problems.

"You are a prince who willingly gave up the crown to become a cook? You are truly a unique individual, Haru. Skyrim is full of people grasping for every scrap of power and refusing to let go. I wish more people were like you," he admitted and told me a bit about the civil war going on in Skyrim. Agnar was not a fan of Jarl Ulfric or Queen Elisif. Instead of sitting down to discuss their problems with each other, they've caused a civil war that has taken the lives of tens of thousands of Nords at a time when Skyrim absolutely could not afford such losses. Apparently, they had just gotten out of a massive war against some evil-ish elves known as the Thalmor.

"Sorry to hear that, Agnar. Politics suck ass. That's why I said, 'Fuck it.'"

Agnar started laughing uncontrollably at my words. "Hahaha! Fuck it, indeed! I like you, Haru! We should become friends. What do you say?" He picked up his mug and held it up to me.

Sometimes, friendships born between two men could just be that simple. "I think that sounds like a fine idea!" I picked up my own mug and slammed it against his. We both knocked back our mead until our mugs were dry. I felt a bit woozy from drinking an almost full mug all at once, though.

"Hah! That's the spirit, my friend! My bottle is empty—bring me another! And pour yourself another mug as well! Tonight, we celebrate our new friendship!" he boasted.

…

"Um, Nii-chan? Are you okay?"

"Ugh… my head." I woke up the next morning with a hangover. "Why am I sleeping on the floor?" I groaned in discomfort as I sat up. There were food and mead stains all over my clothes. The fur on my tails was also a complete mess of stains—that was going to be a bitch to clean out…

Kunou was standing over me with a look of confusion as she glanced around the restaurant. It wasn't just me passed out on the floor. There were over a dozen other people passed out in the booths or lying on the bar counter.

That was some party last night…

After Agnar had declared the two of us friends, he temporarily left the restaurant to gather some more of his comrades so we could throw a big party! My restaurant had manifested in the city of Whiterun—where Agnar and Serana lived. It was also home to the warrior's guild Agnar was the leader of. They were known as the Companions. And they sure knew how to party.

Last night, my restaurant was filled to the brim with boisterous Nords who loved to eat and drink. Of course, as the owner of the place and the reason for the party in the first place, I was roped into the festivities as well.

Everyone drank and ate their fill long into the night. Things got pretty wild. At one point, I'm pretty sure I made out with a hot redheaded werewolf. Her name started with an A or something.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by my little sister poking me in the cheek. "Nii-chan, you're daydreaming again," she pouted at me.

"Sorry about that, imouto. What are you doing here so early?" I asked her while slowly sitting up. I was slightly nauseous from all the alcohol I'd consumed last night, but thankfully not nauseous enough to start immediately throwing up everywhere.

"It's not early, Nii-chan. It's already past 10. I want breakfast!" Kunou declared. She then glanced around curiously. "Who are all these people?"

"They're the friends of my new best friend, Agnar," I told her.

Kunou looked up at me in disbelief. "You have a friend? An actual real friend and not just a make-believe one?" she asked doubtfully.

I gasped and clutched my chest in shock. How could my little sister have so little faith in my ability to make friends!? I have friends… Well, more like friendly acquaintances, but that still counts!

"He has more than just one friend, little sister," a woman's voice called out from the back rooms. Something about her voice sent a shiver through my whole body. I felt oddly drawn to it. It was weird—I'd never felt anything quite like it.

A stunning redheaded woman stepped out from the back room. Her hair was still wet from the obvious bath she'd just taken. She was wearing armor that revealed way too much skin to actually be functional, but I certainly wasn't going to complain.

"I hope you don't mind that I used your washroom. The technology of this plane is fascinating. It's been a long time since I've bathed in such luxury. I've clearly chosen a fine mate," she added, looking at me.

"M–Mate?" I sputtered at her, causing her to smirk at me.

Kunou let out an excited squeal. "My big brother has a girlfriend now too!? What's your name, pretty werewolf nee-chan?"

I have a what...?

"My name is Aela. You are Kunou, correct?" she asked, and Kunou nodded. "I met your brother last night at the party. He professed his love for me and proclaimed his inner fox desired me. To my surprise, my inner wolf also desired Haru. I am not the type of woman to stand on ceremony, so I declared that we are both courting henceforth!" Aela declared.

"That's so romantic!" Kunou squealed.

Was it?

"...That all happened?" I asked. I rubbed my temples and tried my best to remember any of that. Unfortunately, I was drawing a blank. How much did I drink last night?

"Indeed, that all happened." Aela nodded confidently.

"That's so amazing! You're so pretty—you need to meet our mom!" Kunou declared.

"I shall meet mother-in-law when the time comes, but for now, I have to get all these idiots back to Jorrvaskr. The Companions have missions that need to be fulfilled and we're running later than usual. WAKE UP, YOU MORONS!" Aela shouted loudly at all her sleeping comrades.

Over a dozen hungover Nord men started cursing simultaneously. I had to cover Kunou's ears. There were many groans of discontent as they all shuffled their way out of my restaurant and back to Whiterun.

"I shall return later, Haru," Aela smiled at me before she left with the other Companions. As she walked out, she swayed her hips in a way that made it hard to keep my eyes off of them. Damn, she was smoking hot. She was on the same level as Serana.

"Mom's gonna be so happy you have a girlfriend, Haru," Kunou said, her tails swaying behind her. "She loves you. but sometimes she says that you're too much of an antisocial loner who's too obsessed with cooking," Kunou bluntly explained, in the painful way only a child could. It hurt me right in the feels.

Well… that happened. Somehow, I drunkenly got myself a sexy werewolf Viking girlfriend. Apparently, drunk Haru is kinda awesome.

"Ugh… Why do adults do this to themselves?" Harry groaned.

"This is horrible," Hermione whined while clutching her own head.

I glanced over at one of the booths and found Harry and Hermione waking up as well. They had a couple of bottles of alcohol on their table.

Apparently, drunk Haru thought it was okay to give alcohol to teenagers. That was less awesome…

Professor McGonagall was also sitting in their booth for some reason. My memories were foggy, but I think she had woken up halfway through the party and decided to start drinking with her students for some reason.

"Do you know what happened to Agnar or Serana, Harry?" I asked.

"I think they went home towards the end of the party. Or at least Serana carried Agnar home over her shoulder. Vampires can't get drunk off alcohol," he replied.

"I never thought I'd be jealous of a vampire," Hermione grumbled. "My parents will be so disappointed in me if they find out what happened."

"I'd rather not lose my job, so let's all pretend I didn't get drunk with you kids," McGonagall suggested.

Harry and Hermione both agreed. I agreed as well, not because I could possibly lose my job, but because Yasaka might find out I served alcohol to teenagers…

"What are you guys going to do now? Is it safe for you both to go back to school?" I asked them.

"First, I need to find a Pepperup Potion for this hangover…" McGonagall grumbled. "And then, I'll be taking Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger to see an old student of mine. He is a respected lawyer in our community. After that, I'm not sure what we'll do, but I won't fail my students anymore," she declared. She was a pretty cool professor, willing to defend her students from her own boss.

The headmaster of their school was a powerful man in their world. I knew a man like that wasn't going to return all the wealth he'd stolen from Harry without a fight. I offered them sanctuary in Kyoto if it truly came to that. With Serana teaching the kids her magic, though, they should quickly grow in power.

"Tell your mom that we can't thank her enough. Despite the hangover, my thoughts have never been clearer," Harry told me sincerely. "And we'll be back later to learn from Professor Serana," he said before the three magicals left out the door to Hogsmeade.

I was left alone with Kunou in a very messy restaurant. I let out a sigh when I took in the sights and smells. Food and drink were spilled pretty much everywhere.

I was going to have to close for a few hours to clean up. I'd need to restock a bunch of food and alcohol as well.

Despite all that, I couldn't keep the smile off my face!

I didn't expect my first day open to be so successful.

The best part was that both the wizards and the Nords paid in actual gold! I wasn't out to make a profit, but damned if I didn't make one last night!

"Haru, I'm still hungry…" Kunou whined while giving me sad puppy eyes.

XXX